Plight of the Black Farmer

We interview Dr. Ridgely Abdul Mu'min (Muhammad) on the plight of the Black Farmer in America. President Obama wants the federal government to provide $1.25 billion to cover claims by Black farmers who say they were systematically denied loans and other aid that was traditionally afforded White farmers. Obama plans to include the funding in his 2010 budget, according to White House officials. Dr. Ridgely Abdul Mu'min (Muhammad) was born in Winston-Salem, N.C. in 1951. He received his bachelors and masters degrees in Agricultural Economics from N.C. A&T State University. He received his Ph. D. in Agricultural Economics from Michigan State University. He has a minor in Finance with a specialty in Systems Science. He was an Assistant Professor of Agricultural Economics and Principle Investigator on small farm research projects at North Carolina A&T. Along with numerous papers and publications he has written four books. He writes feature articles in the Final Call Newspaper and other Black newspapers related to food security and the survival of the Black farmer. He lectures at colleges and universities on the African origins of agriculture and the agricultural functions of the pyramids of Ancient Egypt along with giving food security and survival seminars to churches and community organizations. Dr. Ridgely is presently the Minister of Agriculture and farm manager of a 1600 acre farm is southwest Georgia owned by the Nation of Islam. He is also the Agricultural Economist and Vice-President of the National Black Farmers and Agriculturists Association. He is the founder of the Kemetic Research Institute of Science and Technology located in Bronwood, Ga. He has been a guest lecturer at a number of colleges and universities such as City College of New York, N.C. A&T, Georgia Tech, N.C. State, Virginia Tech and Duke. He has been a guest on a number of syndicated radio talk shows such as the Gary Byrd Show, the John Arnold Show, the Tom Pope Show and Democr